President Donald Trump was first elected in 2016 with 304 electoral votes, and now, after four years, he has been reelected with even more votes. National polls showed a favor for Trump, but at CKHS, the surveys say differently. The Cougar Chronicle issued an optional survey asking how students felt about President Trump and his plans. This included, but was not limited to, what orders students thought Trump would pass, how they generally felt about Trump, what students were hopeful for during Trump’s term, and what concerns students held about his term.
Based on the 45 random students who answered the survey, it turns out that 48% of the students disliked Trump and his policies. Of the responses, 22% were unsure or unbiased, and 30% were in favor of Trump.
Respondents had very little expectation that Trump would help fix rising inflation, with only 20% of students thinking he would help at all. Although there are others who also believe life will be easier with Trump as the 47th president.
“I’m excited to be able to afford gas when I start driving,” freshman Emma Phillips said.
Students also expressed their feelings about Trump’s Mexican border plans. While 75% of students expect this to be enacted by Trump, not many are happy about it. Survey responses pointed to some common themes, with many students sharing concerns like, “I’m especially worried about immigrants” or that Trump “does not care about minorities.”
“Mass deportation of illegal immigrants will take out a majority of our country, as a whole,” freshman Casey Bayne said. “I don’t think Trump realizes that, illegal or not, immigrants are the foundation of our country and have provided an enormous amount of support, whether it be jobs or food.”
Not many students had feedback on how education may be affected, but according to Blair Taylor, a CK teacher with a background in political science, education during Trump’s term could have radical changes. Taylor also explained that Trump’s cabinet could additionally affect education.
“He is surrounded with people who are hostile to public education or in favor of private education or charter schools,” Taylor said.
Taylor expressed that this could influence the amount of federal funding that public schools get, potentially directly affecting CK.
Taylor also explained that Trump’s political views will most likely be guided into the school system as per Trump’s 20-point plan (a list of 20 things Trump wants to do over his term). This will include minimizing classes that teach critical race theory, as well as classes that include subjects that separate gender from sex. Furthermore, Taylor expressed that a class he currently teaches may be unavailable during Trump’s term.
“For example, in Florida, the AP Psychology, which is a class that I teach, they initially said they might not be able to teach that class,” Taylor said.
Some survey respondents also expressed their concern for their transgender and LGBTQ+ classmates. When asked what they are worried about due to Trump’s presidency, some students’ comments were: “LGBT+ rights,” “LGBTQ community,” and “my rights as an LGBTQ+ member.”
Taylor referenced a situation that happened at Klahowya High School early June 2023: “A group called Moms for Liberty sent students into Klahowya High School with T-shirts that said there are only two genders,” Taylor said.
This is an example of what Taylor expects will come throughout Trump’s presidency with being “a divided country,” as stated by respondents. Overall, students seem to agree on one thing: our country is divided in many ways, and only time can tell the outcomes of Trump’s policies.
